Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 July 2016
An efficient algorithm to compute upper and lower bounds for the first-passage time in the presence of a second absorbing barrier by means of a continuously differentiable decomposable process, e.g. a smooth function of a continuously differentiable Gaussian vector field, is given. The method is used to obtain accurate approximations for the joint density of the zero-crossing wavelength and amplitude and the distribution of the rainflow cycle amplitude. Numerical examples illustrating the results are also given.
Research supported in part by the Swedish Natural Science Research Council, Grant No F-PD 9280–100, and by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Grant No. F49620 85C 0144 at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.